And, I love elaborate, let's call TLC because we're going for broke and we want you to witness every moment, parties.

I just love parties. Why? Because, a party is all about celebrating someone. The entire idea behind a birthday party is that you're saying...gee, the world is a better place with you in it.

And, what's not to love about that?? So, maybe that explains why my daughter's very first birthday party has been so special to me.

Because, gee, the world is a better place with her in it.

For the love of my daughter, I actually baked something more challenging than is typical for me: Iced Sugar Cookies. I rolled the dough out and everything. And, then I made icing. In my stand mixer. And, piped that icing onto the cookies with the authority of Martha Stewart.

And, I only grumbled once.

Or, twice.

But, rest assured, no one else was awake.

Because, it was 3am.

That, dear friends, is true, maternal love.

I decided to just make party favors for the little kids. And, though you can't see through that pink "grass", the party favors were butterfly-shaped crayons that I made in a butterfly muffin pan (I was pretty excited to find any variety of flying creature, nevermind it wasn't a bird). Oh, and said muffin pan was silicone and only $2. Win-Win.

(I should mention that this was a dollar tree, dollar spot, dollar bin affair!).

A few things to note: I have the single most difficult kitchen to photograph in. I swear my walls aren't painted dark, avocado green. The middle picture is probably the most true representation of my actual wall color. Just had to throw that out there. Second, my ruffled table runner was a project of the no-sew variety. I'm debating sharing my tutorial because, how practical is a table runner held together with hot-glue??

(But, it sure is pretty!)

For Merritt's wishing tree, I used an after Christmas bargain tree and Michaels dollar bin tags.

I didn't get a full picture of my party girl in her party outfit. Bummer! She found the beads from the photobooth fairly early and they didn't leave her neck until nap time. But, I'll just say her outfit was pretty stinkin' cute. Why, yes. Yes, she is wearing a baby scarf around her baby neck. Thank you H&M. In fact, thank you H&M for the dress, leggings and cardigan.

I made the headband and my sister sewed the "1" to her cardigan.

Remember when I raved about Village Cupcakes? Well, they provided me with the cute cupcake toppers. I love how they turned out! And, I made the name bunting for M's cupcake.

And, let's not forget the photobooth fun! I simply hung leftover wallpaper on a large wall with thumbtacks, covered the ugly sides with crepe paper and shopped my house (and the dollar spot) for props. It turned out to be a lot of fun!

(PS. I've had some questions about the large bird. It's actually part of her nursery decor and it was made from MDF and covered with paper. My father-in-law jigsawed it out for me. Email me if you have any specific questions)

The timeline details can be found here, in case you're dying to read all about it!

If you've read this far, pat yourself on the back!! That was one wordy, picture-heavy post!!

Thanks for all the sweet birthday wishes everyone's sent me this week for my precious girl. I really appreciate every. single. one. of your kind words!

Fav's.... Rice crispy pops (and not the evil cake pops!)Table runner.... not everyone can sew and when I saw that I was like, oh I'll never have one. Then you tell me it's hot glued?????The different leaves on the tree branch.Sweet Baby with her face in the picture frame, and eating cake.

ok. that is, seriously, one of THE cutest birthday parties EVER!!! how do you come up with all those gorgeous details?!?! my brain just isn't wired that way, even though i desperatly wish it was. love, love, love it.

Emily, this is just the most amazing party ever!! You did a fabulous job!! Every last detail is just adorable! You are such a creative lady!! I can see that a LOT of love went into this! You should be proud!!

Emily - THIS IS SO CUTE!! I am totally swooning over this party! I want a little girl to plan such a cute birthday for! The colors, the vintage touches, can somebody have a party for me like this?? LOL

I love this!!! This is exactly what I want to do every year for my both little guys birthdays(minus the pink)...and then something happens and nothing goes as planned! Wanna come decorate for me this year?!:D

What a beautiful party! I love the wishing tree idea...that'd be fun for a wedding reception even!! And the baby pic in the white birdie frame is just awesome. She is down right adorable...and I love the name Merritt!! Just awesome!Karah @ thespacebetweenblog

Absolutely gorgeous party!! I L-O-V-E every single detail!! Amazing!!! I currently have a huge thing for birds, so as soon as I saw birds in your earlier posts about the party, I couldn't wait to see the final outcome!! BEAUTIFUL!!! I'm pinning it:) Thanks for sharing your daughter's wonderful day with us:)

Wow! What a beautiful 1st Birthday!! The pictures are beautiful-- wonderful memories! Love the birthday timeline! My daughter is turning one soon & wish we lived closer to family so we could do something like this!

Love this! We have our Kitchen Fun and Crafty Friday Link Party going on now and would love for you to share this! http://kitchenfunwithmy3sons.blogspot.com/2012/02/kitchen-fun-and-crafty-friday-link_23.html

Ok.. I totally thought I commented already. Im such a slacker.. who forgets to comment. Anyways.. I love this! I love every. little. detail! I want to go to parties like this.. and eat at least 6 of those cookies. :) Happy Birthday Merritt! Looks like she had a fab time!

Oh wow! This is ridiculously wonderful! I love that you did so much yourself! That's my kind of party! And I absolutely would want to see the tutorial for the table runner! I'm a non-sewing gal, so that sounds right up my alley! In fact, if you ever want to share it on my blog as a guest post, just let me know! I'd be thrilled to have you!

Now that I've found your site I can't seem to leave! What a darling birthday party... that mantel and the timeline... gorgeous! I'll have to check back for some ideas for my girls for their upcoming parties.

Recently I took my son to a 1st birthday where they had a tv playing a musical show made from pictures of the child's 1st year. It had a storyline showing the baby grow up from a newborn to the first tooth, first smile, first crawl and it had music with special effects and a personalized Happy Birthday song. It was done professionally from Smiling Snaps and was so touching! I am doing the same for my kid's upcoming birthday and keep the DVD as a keepsake for my son to see when he grows up!

The combined elimination of emotional trauma and the nutritional support is an incredibly powerful package that promotes health and well being faster than any other method currently available for treating arthritis.It's very vital that you get Plumbing Alameda work made by a specialist. Simply feed the auger into the pipe until the snake meets the obstruction.

Angkor Wat Temple complex in Cambodia is the largest religious building in the world. At the time of its construction the temple was dedicated to Lord Vishnu and later transformed into a Buddhist temple. Facts About Hindus

Purchasing property in Australia from abroad can be fun, energizing, and in some cases upsetting in case you don't know what you're searching for. Knowing your choices with regards to gaining an outside wage and purchasing property in Australia is imperative when living abroad. payday loans san-diego

Ratings and Recommendations by outbrain

About Me

Archive

Search

Please note:

All content and pictures originating at this domain are property of 52mantels.com/Emily Morgenstern. Please do not alter or publish without properly crediting their source.

Periodically I am paid to review products and/or services. Any such endorsement will be clearly identified in the body of the review. Sometimes I just like a product and can't wait to tell you about it. No mention of a disclosure? Then I have no affiliation with the product other than happy customer. I will always be 100% honest in my assessment of a product/service, whether officially endorsing, or not. All opinions are mine and mine alone.